While "10-inch tablet" and "iPad" may seem synonymous, the iPad isn't necessarily a bargain. Even at its steepest discount ever, an iPad will run you $230.
Consider, instead, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A: a 10-inch tablet with an HD screen, an uncluttered Android OS and a sleek physical design. As a Cyber Monday deal, you can grab the $230 tablet for just $160 — and, as a matter of fact, I did.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A: was $230, now $160 @ Best Buy
The Samsung Galaxy Tab A has everything you need in a tablet, from its 1900 x 1200 pixel display, to its 32 GB storage, to its 2 GB RAM, to its refined Android OS. The Galaxy Tab A usually costs $230, but for Cyber Monday, Best Buy has slashed $70 off that price.View Deal
To put this in perspective, the last time I bought a tablet was in 2012, and it was a Google Nexus 10. The tablet performed beautifully for years, but gradually lost battery life and performance quality. I got rid of it a few months back, and have been looking for a new 10-inch table to fill the void. But I didn't need anything incredibly powerful — I just wanted something to watch videos, read comics and occasionally act as a second screen.
This Samsung Galaxy Tab A deal could not have come at a better time. I'm planning to take about a dozen flights over the next three months, and if you've never flown with a large tablet, trust me: It makes a difference. Watching an in-flight movie (or two, or three) on your five-inch phone screen is just not the same.
So far, I'm pleased with the Galaxy Tab A's performance, but I'm not surprised, considering its specs. You get a moderately powerful Exynos 7904A processor, a respectable 2 GB RAM, 32 GB internal storage (expandable via microSD) and a 1900 x 1200 screen for slightly-better-than-full-HD picture. Samsung claims that the device can last up to 10 hours on a single charge.
The Galaxy Tab A is hardly the most powerful tablet out there, but if you want a tablet primarily for entertainment purposes, you don't really need all the bells and whistles of a Surface — or even an iPad. At $160, this gadget won't wipe out your bank account, either, leaving some funds available to buy holiday presents for friends and family.
Cyber Monday: Quick links
- Adidas: Up to 50% off select apparel
- Alienware: Up to $550 off Alienware gaming desktops and laptops
- Amazon: Cyber Monday sales now live
- B&H Photo: Up to $500 off Canon, Nikon, and more
- Backcountry: Up to 50% off sitewide
- Best Buy: Shop Cyber Monday now
- Boost Mobile: Extra 15% off all phones via coupon "CYBER2019"
- Case-Mate: 40% off sitewide via coupon "SALE40"
- Casper: 20% off mattresses at Amazon
- Chewy: Up to 60% off pet food and toys; BOGO select items
- Dell: Save up to 40% on XPS, monitors, desktops
- Expedia: $200 off flights today only
- Harry & David: Up to 50% off gift baskets
- HP: Up to 65% off Envy, Spectre, and more laptops
- Hydro Flask: 25% off via coupon "XMASEVE19"
- Lenovo: Up to 56% off ThinkPads
- Lowe's: Up to 60% off DeWalt, Dyson, Honeywell, GE, more
- Microsoft: $500 off Surface Book 2
- Mixbook.com: 55% off sitewide via "CYBER19"
- MyHeritage: DNA kits now $39 each
- Newegg: Sales on components, graphics cards, SSDs
- Nike: 25% off select styles via coupon "CYBER"
- Otterbox: 25% off + free shipping
- Purple: Up to $400 off Purple mattresses
- REI: Cyber Week sale 50% off sitewide
- Rosetta Stone: BOGO subscription sale
- Sears: Up to 40% off appliances
- Sling: Free Amazon Fire TV Stick
- Sonos: Up to $100 off select Sonos speakers
- Verizon FiOS: Free $100 Visa card and Disney Plus w/ Internet + Custom TV
- Verizon: Free phone and 50% off activation fee when purchased online
- Walmart: Best deals you can get now
- Xfinity: $150 Prepaid Visa card with Internet + TV bundles